Health at Every Size

Health at Every Size

Did you know that research shows restrictive dieting and weight cycling can lead to complications such as lowered metabolic rate, reduced muscle tissue, decreased body temperature, and eating disorders?

Our clinicians approach treatment from a Health at Every Size (HAES) stance. Focusing on weight can perpetuate and worsen disordered eating, body dissatisfaction, and pre-occupation with food and body. In contrast, practicing from a HAES approach increases the chance that an individual engages in behaviors that are in the spirit of self-care, which can lead to positive outcomes.

HAES heals all bodies.

“The only way to solve the weight problem is to stop making weight a problem—to stop judging ourselves and others by our size. Weight is not an effective measure of attractiveness, moral character, or health. The real enemy is weight stigma, for it is the stigmatization and fear of fat that causes the damage and deflects attention from true threats to our health and well-being.” ― Linda Bacon, Health at Every Size

The Health At Every Size Principles are:

Weight Inclusivity: Accept and respect the inherent diversity of body shapes and sizes and reject the idealizing or pathologizing of specific weights.

Health Enhancement: Support health policies that improve and equalize access to information and services, and personal practices that improve human well-being, including attention to individual physical, economic, social, spiritual, emotional, and other needs.

Respectful Care: Acknowledge our biases, and work to end weight discrimination, weight stigma, and weight bias. Provide information and services from an understanding that socio-economic status, race, gender, sexual orientation, age, and other identities impact weight stigma, and support environments that address these inequities.

Eating for Well-being: Promote flexible, individualized eating based on hunger, satiety, nutritional needs, and pleasure, rather than any externally regulated eating plan focused on weight control.

Life-Enhancing Movement: Support physical activities that allow people of all sizes, abilities, and interests to engage in enjoyable movement, to the degree that they choose.